


Café con Leche

by black_bird



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Bisexual Lance (Voltron), Closeted Character, Closeted Characters, Fluff, Gay Keith (Voltron), Gay Panic, Highschool AU, I don't know how to tag so I'm just going to update it as I go, LGBTQ Character, LGBTQ Themes, Laith, Lance's family - Freeform, M/M, Mutual Pining, Not Canon Compliant, Pining, Pining Keith (Voltron), Pining Lance (Voltron), Pride Parade, i guess im continuing it, i think its slowburn, im really trying to make it slowburn???, klance, pretty gay, slowburn, they go to pride, will probably go under editing later if i ever get around to it
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-18
Updated: 2018-08-21
Packaged: 2019-06-29 00:08:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 6,817
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15717876
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/black_bird/pseuds/black_bird
Summary: Lance thought he was being sly going to pride in secret, but little did he know someone he knew would be there as well.orA shared secret becomes just what this group of misfits needs to bring them together, through thick and thin.





	1. Gay Panic

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote this late at night and haven't proofread it yet, but I hope you enjoy! Comments and kudos are always appreciated

PRIDE PARADE: SUNSET BLVD

SUNDAY

12 PM

The ad shined brightly on Lance’s phone screen like a warning. He stared at the word ‘pride’ like a loaded pistol pointed to his head. He looked at the photos of the people smiling and waving flags and felt his throat tighten up.

He could never have that, he thought.

Still, he kept the website bookmarked. He kept looking at the details and checking his schedule. He looked for a friend who he could go with, go for _them_ instead of _him_. Instead, he got shame weighing down on his shoulders.

So when Pidge slung herself over his shoulder and lazily asked, “what are you looking at, huh?” Lance, of course, slammed his phone down, locking it. Fear ran through his veins like adrenaline as he faced Pidge, afraid she had seen.

When she broke out into laughter it sounded like a fire alarm, going off in Lance’s head and blocking out all else. _She’s laughing at me,_ he thought anxiously.

“Flirting with a new girl?” she guessed, pushing her glasses up smugly. Lance’s body flooded with relief, melting into the back of his school desk as he smirked, playing off his previous nervousness.

“Actually, I’ve got a date this Sunday,” he claimed, immediately wincing. It was a lie, of course. He needed a cover-up if nothing else.

“Really?” a new voice entered and Lance turned around to see a familiar long head of hair. He groaned internally.

“Just because you can’t get a date doesn’t mean I can’t, Kogane,” Lance retorted, turning his nose up as Keith sat down in the desk next to him. Following him into the classroom was Hunk with a handful of snacks. Lance thanked him for the carton of chocolate milk placed on his desk as he languidly placed his feet up on the chair in front of him.

Keith chuckled, a shit-eating grin growing on his face. Lord, Lance hated how his grin could make his skin _crawl_. “Just because I don’t actively _fail_ at getting a girlfriend doesn’t mean I can’t,” he replied, cocking an eyebrow. Lance wanted to positively wipe that smirk off his pretty little face.

“Oh yeah? Well what are you doing Sunday, huh?” he coughed out. Keith stiffened, visibly uncomfortable with the question. For a moment he stumbled over his words and Lance felt a bit of pride at making him trip up.

Keith rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. “I was going to visit Shiro, actually,” he says unsurely. “Yeah. I was going over to his place,” he decides on, before scrunching up his nose at Lance.

Hunk enters quickly, sensing the uneasiness in the room. “So, what’re you doing for this date, Lance?” he asks, quickly redirecting the conversation. Lance freezes. He didn’t think that far.

“Coffee shop!” he exclaims. “We’re going to a café downtown.” Immediately, he regrets his words. He panicked.

Hunk raises his eyebrows. “Oh,” he mutters. “This is pretty serious then?” Lance groans internally. He thinks he sees Keith’s shoulders drop but ignores it in favor of his current predicament. Of course, Hunk, his best friend of ten years, would remember the significance.

“What’s so serious about a coffee shop?” Pidge snorts, looking for any reason to jab at Lance. Hunk looks excited to answer but doesn’t in favor of letting Lance answer for himself.

Lance tumbles through his words, trying not to make a big deal out of the situation. “My parents met in a café when my mom was in college. So as a sort of tribute to them I only really take people to a café if I think it could really go somewhere,” he explained dejectedly. He didn’t need something else to have Pidge or Keith teasing him about.

“That’s awfully sweet,” Keith commented, much to Lance’s surprise. The way he looked with his cheek resting on his hand and his eyes sort of wondering with a relaxed expression adorning his easy features, Lance _almost_ thought he looked nice.

“So, who’s the lucky lady?” Pidge pressed, breaking the moment. Lance swallowed deeply. He couldn’t stand lying anymore.

“Why would I tell you, so you can tease me about it later?” he retorted, desperately trying to get the attention off of himself. “Why don’t we talk about Keith, huh? Didn’t you just see Shiro recently?”

Hunk chuckled, going along with Lance. “Yeah,” he smiled. “Save some for the rest of us why don’t you?” he teased lightly.

Keith froze up, looking like he was searching for a comeback. Before he could respond, the bell rang for the next period.  Pidge groaned, practically rolling off the desk she’d been sitting on. “Ugh, physics,” she grumbled, grabbing her bland messenger bag. Lance picked up his patchy backpack (full of stitches from when his mother had fixed it), and got up from his seat, making sure to grab his blue iPhone.

They each exited the classroom, going their separate ways and said their goodbyes.

“Good luck with your date, Lance,” Hunk said with a wave goodbye.”

“Yeah, tell us how badly it goes,” Pidge smirked, heading off quietly.

Lance rolled his eyes. He was in deep. “Hey, Keith,” he sighed, looking to the boy as he walked off with his dark red laptop case.

“What?” Keith grumbled, stopping and turned around. Under his gaze, Lance felt a rock in his throat.

“Tell Shiro I say hi, yeah?” he mumbled, dropping his stare to the ground. He heard Keith puff out air in a kind of chuckle.

“Of course,” he walked off.

Lance sighed deeply, resting his back against the hallway wall as he thought over these past few minutes.

“I guess I have to go to pride now,” he muttered, checking his phone again to see if the ad was still there. If he was going to be out of the dorms anyways (to cover up for his lie) he may as well get something out of it.


	2. Surprise at Pride

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Perhaps the unexpected meeting was a blessing.

Keith had no idea how absolutely _incredible_ it would be to go to a pride parade. He was closeted and so had never really had any other LGBT friends that he knew of. Sure, there were plenty of people online he had spoken to, but seeing it in person was completely different. There were so many of people completely owning their identity. He had never experienced anything like it in his whole life.

Honestly, it was a little overwhelming. He rarely ever left the dorms and when he did it was to visit Shiro or go somewhere with his friend group (if he could call them that). There he stood, wearing all black except for his stupid red cropped jacket and a rainbow pin hastily pinned to his collar, all on his own. Frankly, he didn’t know what to do with himself.

So, he looked around for _something_ to do with himself. He didn’t know what he expected to find, he certainly didn’t want to run into anyone he knew. Eventually, he decided to wander around, until he found something to keep himself occupied.

Keith looked over the heads of all the people. For the longest time, he couldn’t feel proud of himself for liking men. Being here, though, he almost felt guilty for feeling that way. Men walked hand in hand with their boyfriends, as did girls with their girlfriends. He had never been somewhere so positively full of love.

For the first time that he really remembered, Keith was _really_ glad to be gay and to be able to be a part of this. At least, that was what he was thinking until he, distractedly looking everywhere except in his path, walked into a passerby.

“Oh, jeez, I’m so sorry!” Keith exclaimed quickly, trying to see through the stranger’s bright rainbow boa that was now tangling the two of them. Soon enough, Keith pulled away to be greeted by the view of a familiar pair of confused blue eyes and styled brown hair.

Keith gulped.

Hard.

He pinched himself to see if it was a dream.

Standing in front of him, clad in tight blue booty shorts and a white crop top, fearlessly sporting a rainbow boa and purple-rimmed glasses, was Lance McClain.

Lance’s eyes widened, taking a moment to process before going into full panic. He started stuttering. “I’m not… you don’t get it, I just…” He swallowed, lost in his own words, before spotting the pin on Keith’s jacket and looking up at him. “You’re gay?” he spouted out.

If not for the red climbing up his cheeks and the reminder of just _how_ gay Keith was standing right in front of him, he might’ve laughed. “Yeah,” he nodded nervously, tucking his hands into his pants pockets. “You?” Keith new for a _damn_ fact Lance was into girls.

“Bi,” Lance answered, a little too quickly, before following it up with, “I think.” Keith nodded, remembering when he was just discovering his own sexuality. He had plenty of times where he questioned himself, too.

“Listen,” Keith reasoned, looking anywhere except at Lance. “I won’t mention this to anyone, so I’d love it if you could not mention this to anyone. I’ll just walk away and forget I saw you, you should go find your date anyways,” he explained haphazardly, cursing under his breath after his voice cracked on the word ‘date.’

Lance rocked on his heals anxiously. “Actually, there’s no date.” If he hadn’t been so occupied with himself, he may have noticed the relieved sigh that flushed through Keith. “I just couldn’t admit to them I was going to pride.” Lance mumbled out the last part, ashamed to admit it. “But, yeah, you should get going. I’m sure you don’t want to keep Shiro waiting.”

Keith’s eyes widened, he had forgotten about that. “There’s no Shiro,” he said quickly, grabbing Lance’s wrist to keep him from walking away. He let go just as soon, realizing what he did. “What I mean is, I guess we’re kind of in the same boat.”

Lance laughed, feeling his cheeks burn. It made Keith laugh, too, and soon the two of them were standing together at pride, being pushed together by the crowd as they laughed until their eyes welled up in tears.

Lance was the first to contain himself, wiping his eye as he smiled at Keith. “Well, if you’re on your own I wouldn’t mind keeping you company,” he offered, hand slipping past Keith’s.

In a moment of utter stupidity and false confidence, Keith grabbed his hand. “That sounds good to me. Maybe you’d want to join me for coffee after,” he grinned through giggles. Realizing his words, Keith froze up and pulled away from his hand, rubbing his wrist as he tried to explain himself. “I-I mean, only if you want to…”

Lance quieted Keith by bringing his hand to rest on his shoulder. “That sounds great,” he replied brightly, before grabbing Keith and dragging him to watch the parade together.

Because future be damned, Lance wanted to spend right now with the cute boy next to him _right now_.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not sure if I want to continue this which is why I have this at ??? chapters. I have plenty of ideas to build off of, but this also isn't a bad place to end it


	3. Espresso Cures Depresso

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is just dialogue. That's it  
> I've decided to continue this story, although I'm not 100% sure where I'm going with it. But I guess I don't really have to? I hope you enjoy where I go with this!  
> Updates will be as quick as possible and pretty spontaneous, but I'll try to keep it going

“I can’t believe your sexual awakening was from  _ high school musical! _ ” Keith sputtered into his black coffee, cheeks flushed red and a grin adorning his face. Lance grinned back, their conversation much more relaxed than it had been earlier.

“If ‘I don’t dance’ isn’t about sexuality, then what is it about?” Lance retorted stubbornly. “Clearly Chad, confronted by the flaming Ryan, is struggling with his sexuality! It literally talks about which way he swings!” Lance continued rambling on, Keith watching him with a quizzical look. “What?” Lance asked, angrily taking a bite out of his muffin.

“I…” Keith chuckled under his breath. “I have no idea what you’re saying. I’ve never seen high school musical.”

Lance practically spit his drink back into the cup. “You’re joking,” he declared. Keith shook his head, his hair falling in front of his face as he did. Lance leaned back in his chair and groaned. “What a pain,” he mumbled, before looking back up to smirk at Keith. “Now I have to watch it with you.”

Keith shrugged. “At least it’s good company.”

The two shared a sincere smile for a fraction of a second, basking in the moment.

“So,” Lance took a sip of his cappuccino. “When did you realize you were gay?” he asked harmlessly, leaning forward onto the table. His expression softened, letting Keith know he wouldn’t judge no matter  _ what _ the answer was.

Keith rubbed the back of his neck, scrunching up his hair. It wasn’t something he’d ever really thought about. “I never really liked girls. I mean, they’re nice I guess but I never wanted to be with one, you know?” Lance didn’t know, considering he’d date any gender, but he nodded anyways. 

“I guess the first time I saw a guy and thought…” he tried to think of the right words, leaning back in his chair and looking towards the ceiling.

“You’d tap that?” Lance filled in.

Keith’s ears immediately turned a burning red, his eyes wide. “I-I-I mean, no. Well, yes. But not when I was-”

“So when was the first time you saw a guy and thought you’d tap that?” Lance asked slyly, leaning his chin on both his hands with a shit-eating grin. Keith shook his head roughly and avoided making eye contact, he didn’t think he could handle it if his heart pounded any harder than it was.

“It was a fireman,” he finally spurts out. “This guy in his early twenties would volunteer often and he was  _ totally jacked. _ I saw him working out one day and was done for,” Keith admitted, palms feeling sweaty.

Lance’s smile as he watched Keith struggle from word to word is so sickeningly sweet Keith thought he’d get a cavity. “You were around firemen a lot?” Lance questions, hoping to get to a ground that Keith is more comfortable around. He nods.

“My father was a fireman,” he clarified. “Being a single dad and all, sometimes he’d bring me to work when there was no one to look after me.” Keith rubbed his wrist as he looked down at the plate, obviously avoiding eye contact.

Lance gasped. Keith had never mentioned much about his family. Really, he didn’t feel like he could share much with the people around him. They were all fine, sure, but he never felt close enough.  _ But maybe, _ he thought,  _ Lance is different. _

“Dude!” Lance exclaimed, the excitement sewn into his tone quickly catching Keith’s attention. “This is so wild!” Keith raised an eyebrow, rather confused with this turn events. Lance smiled sheepishly, explaining himself quickly. “It’s just...we’re juniors. I’ve known you for  _ two full years _ and I had no idea about any of this” Lance sighed, messing his hair up with his hand as he thought. Keith absentmindedly wished he could feel his hair. “We’re friends, right?” Lance asked quickly, surprising Keith. His voice was caught in his throat.

“Yes?”

“We are friends! Good!” Lance exclaimed. “Because for as long as we’ve been friends, we’ve never talked much. Really, the four of us never talk about anything!” he huffed, thinking back on his conversations. He wondered if this bothered anyone else.

“Well, you’ve got Hunk, right? Aren’t you guys super close?” Keith asked hesitantly, shifting forward in his seat to fully engage in their conversations. Lance groaned again, messing with his hair. Keith wished he could stop looking so cute with his pouty lips and curling hair.

“Sure,” he mutters. “But Hunk doesn’t even know I’m bi.” Lance’s expression dropped, thinking about his relationship. “I don’t even know if I’m bi.”

Keith gulped. He  _ really  _ didn’t know what to do in these situations.  _ Knowing _ he was gay was never hard for Keith, admitting it to others was.

“Shiro doesn’t know I’m gay,” he said quickly, knotting his eyebrows and closing his eyes as if embracing for impact. 

Lance looked up, mouth open a bit. Then, he snorted. Soon, it turned to full out laughter. Keith looked on, shocked. Of all the unexpected things he’d gone through today, Lance’s openness had to be the most surprising of them all.

“I guess,” he said between laughs. “We’re more similar than I thought.”

At that, Keith was laughing, too. Him and Lance?  _ Similar? _ He’d never thought he’d say it, but Lance was damn right. They  _ were _ similar.

“I guess you’re right,” Keith chuckled. “We’re both gay and scared, even if you wear it better than I do.” 

Lance looked at Keith quizzically, before staring down at his outfit. “ _ Oh. _ ” Lance crossed his arms over his chest, rubbing his hands on his forearms abashedly. “This is just...It’s pride, right? I figure I had to look the part. I swear, I usually don’t dress like this,” he explained, pressing his knees together. Suddenly he was very aware of his long exposed legs and his bare, weak midriff. He gulped nervously.

_ I fucked up, _ Keith thought, seeing the negative reactions from Lance. “No, i-it’s nice!” he stuttered out.

“You really think so?”

“Yes!” Keith blushed brightly, trying not to look at Lance’s beautifully sculpted thighs or the freckles that covered his abdomen. “But…” he trailed off. “You can borrow my jacket if that makes you feel better?” Keith offered, tugging at his sleeves. Lance’s eyes widened (Keith couldn’t help but compare him to a puppy), before nodding quickly.

Silently, Keith hands Lance his jacket and watches him put it on. Now, he notices that his forearms have freckles, too. They trail up his arms to hide behind his sleeves. Studying his movements, he thinks for a moment that Lance is kind of like water. His movements are elegant and fluid, despite him being so very lanky and long. Before long, Lance is sitting silently in front of Keith, now adorning Keith’s jacket. It’s a little big in the shoulders, but not awkwardly so. It’s a bit endearing if anything.

“What’re you staring at?” Lance wondered, breaking Keith from his concentration.

“Y-Y-You got foam on your l-lip!” he lied, hiding his blush with his hands as Lance grabbed a napkin to wipe it off, saying a smalls thanks.  _ Oh no, _ Keith thinks.  _ Don’t look at his lips. Please. _

Keith cleared his throat, looking to change the subject. “S-So, do your parents know?” Keith asked, leaning forward and doing his best to play it off like he wasn’t just ogling at Lance. 

Lance let out a dry laugh. He smiles looked sadder now, his eyes drooping down at the age. “No, I can’t tell them.” He looks down, taking a bite of his muffin. “I might never. I can just marry a girl, making them happy. There’s no need,” he mutters, getting quieter towards the end.

“Not to be insensitive,” Keith starts, “But why wouldn’t you tell them. It’s a part of you, isn’t it?” If Keith remembers right, Lance was very close with his family. He’d never mentioned anything about them not liking gays, and he seemed very comfortable around them. Lance, however, seems to have a different people.

“Don’t get me wrong, but I just don’t want to cause unneeded trouble.” Lance habitually placed his hands into Keith’s pockets, feeling anxious. “My parents aren’t exactly  _ homophobic _ , but they’re not really comfortable with gay people. They’re really trying their best to come to terms with the way things are and to tell them that with that,  _ their son _ is bi, I just… I can’t do that to them. I can’t cause them that stress if I could just avoid it. I still like girls, so I’ll just…” Lance trailed off. Honestly, it sounded more like he was trying to convince himself rather than Keith.

There were a lot of things Keith wanted to say in that moment. He wanted Lance to know if he wanted to marry a man, he should be able to. He deserved to have his parents with him when he did. Keith wanted to tell Lance it shouldn’t  _ matter _ how they feel about it, and he should tell them anyways. But he knew as someone who had gone through the same struggle, it wouldn’t change anything. As much as he wanted to burst, he knew that would only garner a negative reaction.

Instead, he took in a deep breath. “My dad was extremely homophobic,” Keith spoke quietly. They were, after all, sitting in a cafe only a few blocks away from pride. He didn’t feel comfortable if someone overheard them talking about such a sensitive subject.

Lance leaned in to hear better. “Was? Did he change?” Lance asked hopefully.

Keith shook his head, gripping his knuckles tightly. “I…” Keith started, before quickly swearing under his breath at his damned voice cracks. “My dad died when I was nine. I never got to tell him. I know it would’ve been hard, but…” Keith sighed deeply. “ _ Damn, _ do I regret it. I wish he could know. He deserves that, at least.” 

Lance swallowed deeply. That really made him think.

“C-could I change the subject?” he asks hesitantly. He’s had enough deep talk for today, Keith nodded and Lance relaxed his shoulders, pretending he didn’t just bring up Keith’s dead dad. “Is Shiro your brother?”

If Keith had picked up his drink a second earlier, he would’ve done a spit take.

Placing his cup on the saucer, Keith looked at Lance with disgust. “ _ Ugh,  _ no!”

Lance tried his best to muffle his laugh. “I’m sorry it’s just you guys hang out a lot! He’s basically a legend back at the garrison and you’re the top of the class! It would make sense,” Lance defends himself. Keith groans, thinking about what a  _ mess _ Shiro really is.

“We live together, I’ll give you that. He took me in when I was nine after… you know,” Keith trailed off, before angrily messing with his hair. “But he is in  _ no _ way related to me! He’s more like a weird older roommate than anything.”

Lance sighed, holding his hands up comically in defense. “All right, my bad, my bad. Isn’t it kind of lonely without siblings?”

Keith shrugged nonchalantly. “Isn’t it kind of busy with ten siblings?” he retorted, leaning forward with a calculating look.

“I have three!” 

“Tell me about them.”

“I will! Wait-what?”

Keith stared at Lance intently. “Tell me about your family. I hear about them vaguely a lot, but I guess I don’t know much about them at all.”

Lance’s eyes widened. Keith nodded at him as if to say ‘ _ well go on. _ ’ “Well,” Lance responded, sitting up a bit straighter. His expression completely lit up compared to their previous conversation, making Keith smile as well. “Veronica is the oldest. Technically she’s only my half-sibling but it’s never made much of a difference. She was born before my parents met and she’s almost twenty-nine now. She’s really incredible. She’s a lawyer and all, and she practices in a few countries!” Keith could clearly tell Lance admired her from the way he spoke. A little voice in his head wondered if he’d ever get to meet her, but he quickly pushed the thoughts aside.

“Then there’s Luis! He’s twenty-one and owns a flower shop with his wife. They got married straight out of high school and he inherited the shop so he never went to college. It’s a point of contentment with my mom, but she’s grown into the idea. Sometimes I help out on the weekends,” Lance smiles.

“Do you have a favorite flower?” Keith asked absentmindedly, picturing Lance walking through the flower shop, tending to the flower. To his surprise, Lance’s answer was quick and well-practiced.

“Pink carnations! It’s kind of sappy, but they remind me of my mother,” Lance smiles sweetly. “She’d always decorate the house with carnations for different occasions, and she grew a few in our yard.” For a moment, Lance looks so serene thinking about his mother that Keith feels like he’s intruding on something precious. Quickly, he distracts himself.

“And your third sibling?” he asks, gulping as Lance’s expression changes.

“Marco! He’s fourteen, only two years younger than me. He goes to public school, though. I don’t know what he wants to be, but he’s an incredible musician, you’ve got to hear him sing!” Lance exclaimed, before quieting down and speaking in a low voice. “But he can’t know I said that.”

Keith chuckled. Maybe it did seem like fun to have a sibling.

“What about your parents?” Keith asked, shifting forward to and resting his cheek on his hand to stare at Lance endearingly. Lance grinned.

“As you know, my mother, Sara, met my dad, Mateo, in a coffee shop. At the time she was working on her bachelors in journalism and Vern, that’s Veronica, was barely a year old. Mom got her bachelors and works as an editor now, so she’s always been the backbone of the house. Dad never went to college, so he was home more often, but he’d pick up jobs at different places.” 

Keith was intrigued. In the way, Lance spoke about his family, and how he described them as being so  _ happy _ . He wished he could have something like that.

Lance was waiting for Keith to respond, realizing he had been speaking about himself for a while. Keith, at a loss for words, tried to form a response, when an employee approached them.

“I hate to interrupt your date,” the barista spoke. Keith couldn’t help but notice the rainbow pin on their apron. “But we’ll be closing soon. We’re so sorry for the inconvenience.” Quickly, they walked away to clean the other empty tables.

Looking around for a second, Keith noticed they were the only ones left in the cafe. When he checked his phone, he noticed it was 6:48. “Guess we’ve been here for a while,” Lance said sheepishly. Keith agreed, nodding.

“I’m gonna run to the bathroom to change. Let’s say we ran into each other at the train station and decided to go to the dorms together?” Lance asked, already standing and grabbing his bag. Keith had almost forgotten about that. That they were closeted and lying. That they were just friends who ran into each other on accident. He nodded.

“Sure. Just bros that happened to cross paths.”

That’s all they were, after all.

Lance handed Keith his jacket as he walked away. Keith put it on, feeling the warmth of the previous wearer. He couldn’t hide the blush climbing it’s way from his neck all the way to his ears.

_ Just friends, huh? _

He’d be okay with that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again, I hope you enjoyed this chapter!  
> If you to see me elsewhere, you can find my tumblr at the-black-birb.tumblr.com  
> This story is very much a work in progress, but I hope you enjoy it regardless!


	4. Just Out of Reach

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keith has a lot of feelings

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Do you guys prefer long or short chapters? I had only intended on this fic being two chapters and so the first two are awfully short, and I'll admit I'm doing a lot of making up for it now, filling in the blanks with things that weren't already established. Still, I hope you're enjoying where I'm going with the story. I'm not very good about replying to comments, but I swear I am reading them all and it's so encouraging! Thank you for all your sweet words :)

“Are you alright?”

Keith looked up from his bed to see his roommate, Ryan, staring down at him. Immediately he looked down again, feeling the lights of their room burn into his retinas.

“I’m fine, just,” he yawned. “Didn’t get enough sleep.” Ryan nodded softly, before waving and muttering a goodbye, heading out to breakfast. Keith slumped against his bedpost again. He couldn’t get a wink of sleep all night, too occupied thinking about yesterday and a certain Cuban boy.

“What am I gonna do…” he mumbled, combing his fingers through his hair in deep thought.  _ This shouldn’t be hard, _ Keith thought.  _ It’s not like we’re dating. There’s no problem, nothing about our relationship has changed. _

He groaned into his hand. Maybe that  _ was _ the problem. What was he going to do now, when every time he saw Lance there were alarms going off in his head? How could he just pretend things were  _ normal? _

_ I bet Lance won’t have a problem. He’ll strut in with his pretty face and pretend he doesn’t even know who I am. _

Keith sighed, gathering his belongings for school. He’d deal with it. At least if he broke things off now, he’d save hurting later. He’d play it cool, he wouldn’t approach Lance first, he’d-

Drop everything he was doing when the name ‘Lance McClain’ popped up on his phone screen.

“Hey, dude, what’s up?” Keith asked, trying hard to sound nonchalant and like he  _ hadn’t _ just been thinking about the person on the end of the phone for hours. To his surprise, Lance’s voice sounded urgent.

“This isn’t the time for slacking Keith! I have a serious problem, and I can’t tell anyone else about it!” Lance practically shouted into the phone. Keith pulled it away from his ear.

Unconsciously shifting forward, Keith responded swiftly. “Alright, I’ll help. Whatever you need.” His serious tone caught Lance by surprise. People didn’t normally take him seriously.

“Alright,” Lance started, taking a deep breath in. “Do you think you have to have sex with someone to know your sexuality? Like, you have to screw both a guy and a girl to know whether you’re gay, or bi, or… or,” he trailed off. There were so many other things.

Keith audibly sighed into the phone. Lance tensed up, he knew it was a stupid question. He shouldn’t have asked in the first place. Keith probably didn’t want to answer.

“I used to think about that a lot, too.”

_ Oh. _

“It’s a pretty stupid question, actually.”

_ Nevermind. _

“Do you think cishets had gay sex to know they were straight?” Keith asked, tone dead serious. Lance tried his best not to burst out laughing, although the question came out of nowhere.

“No,” Keith answered for him. “They didn’t.”

Lance was trying to cover up his smile so he didn’t look dumb. “Well, yeah, but they’re...y’know. They don’t face the problems we do.” 

With Keith’s next response, Lance could almost  _ hear  _ him rolling his eyes. “Yeah, because no one is pressuring them to question themselves. That’s why the questions stupid, you’re only trying to prove to yourself what you already know.” Keith let the silence sit between them, awkwardly, for a moment, before adding, “You don’t have to prove yourself to anyone, Lance, no matter what you do.”

Lance knew his smile made him look  _ really _ dumb, now, with how big it was and all. But he couldn’t help it. He hadn’t felt this happy about himself in such a long time, as selfish as that may be.

“Thanks, Keith,” Lance spoke. Hearing Lance say his name, Keith perked up a bit. “Thanks for the-” Suddenly, the tone changed. “Help with the calc homework! I was really having trouble understanding that problem, it really bothered me.”

Keith furrowed his eyebrows. “ _ What the hell? _ ” he spouted, tone sharp. Lance gulped.

“Oh,” Lance spoke intentionally into the phone. “Hey, Hunk! You’re back!”

_ Oh, _ Keith thought.  _ Right. _

Sometimes when he spoke to Lance, Keith forgot he was still in the closet.

“Glad I could help,” Keith spoke softly into the phone. “Text me if you need any more help. Bye.”

_ Shit. _ Keith locked his phone and sat on his bed.

_ Shit, shit, shit, shit. _

He was falling for Lance. Badly.

_ I need a distraction, _ he thought, before grabbing his room key and heading to breakfast.

* * *

 

The students at the Garrison were far enough through the school year that they’re names were practically ingrained into the seats they sat at. Cliques were loosely established, although in a school as academically competitive as theirs is had little say in much.

Still, it created walls between people. Walking into the cafeteria, Keith could practically feel the tension pulling him back. Sluggishly, he took his normal seat across from Katie (affectionately known as ‘Pidge’) Holt.

“You look like shit,” she muttered into her laptop screen. Pidge was always doing one of two things. Either she was coding and trying to create something or hacking and trying to break into it. Keith had grown apathetic to her at this point, used to the dull conversations and blunt insults.

“I know,” he muttered back.

Keith wouldn’t really consider Pidge a friend. They never really introduced themselves to one another, having met each other through interactions between Shiro and Matt, Pidge’s older brother. Those two had a bond stronger than steel, that could be traced back to the very academy they found themselves in. Still, Keith and Pidge weren’t quite as lucky. They stayed around each other as a defense mechanism. ‘Power in numbers,’ one might say. It was much more of an agreement than a friendship.

Still, Pidge was being rather talkative today. As Keith sat down with his cheerios and almond milk (lactose intolerance was a killer), Pidge spoke again. “Lotor’s cackle is out again,” she commented, barely looking up from her computer.

“Cackle?” Keith looked over to see what she was looking at.

“It’s a group of hyenas. I thought it was fitting,” Pidge responded, fixing her glasses like a movie cliche. 

Sure enough, prince of highschool Lotor had entered the cafeteria with his three female companions: Zethrid, Axca, and Ezor. No one knew what their relationship with one another was, but there was no doubt that their sheer presence was terrifying. 

But Keith didn’t care much about them. Instead, he looked at the duo walking in with them. As they normally would, Lance and Hunk trailed behind them. Keith never knew how Lance got along with Lotor. He never thought about it until now, actually. It never concerned him. Until now.

Keith hastily dragged his eyes away from the scene before he could do something he’d regret. He started on his cheerios, hoping Pidge hadn’t noticed.

“What, one of his girls caught your eye”

Of course, Pidge noticed.

“It’s not like… no. They didn’t,” Keith denied quickly. He was being unfair to Lance. Over two years of being in the same school together, and he’s barely even thought about him until now, all because he learned  _ maybe _ he’s into guys. He doesn’t even know.

Keith shook his head. This was getting out of hand. His thoughts were getting too damned loud, his mind was screaming.

Sloppily, he stood up. Quickly throwing out his breakfast and grabbing his bag, Keith stormed out of the cafeteria.

Lance barely had time to watch him go.

* * *

 

It had admittedly been a long time since Keith skipped class, but he didn’t expect anyone to notice. Usually, the teachers didn’t care much for attendance in the first place. If you weren’t there, it was reflected in your grades. If you could get away with skipping and passing your classes? Congrats.

So when Lance barged into the empty classroom during lunch pouting and telling Keith “I missed you during calc!” he was surprised, to say the least. After all, he sat behind Lance and in a different row. They didn’t usually talk or anything, and Keith didn’t even know if he’d notice if Keith was gone. Still, he couldn’t leave Lance hanging.

“I’m… sorry?” he tried, quickly standing from the ground and joining Lance to sit at a desk. Lance nodded his head defiantly.

“That’s better. If you’re not at calc, who’s going to help me with my homework?” he smirked and Keith thought he’d go blind. Who allowed this man to be so charming? How could he say things like this without missing a beat? Keith would never know.

“Hey!” Hunk entered the room, carrying his usual bag of snacks. “Are you having fun without me?” As usual, Hunk was smiling. In Keith’s mind, Hunk was always in a good mood. His presence seemed to light up the room and ease tension. He was magic, Keith swore it.

“Never,” Lance replied, leaving back to look at Hunk. “How could I have fun without my best friend?” The two smiled at each other and Keith felt something uncomfortable in his stomach. It felt like he was intruding.

The actual intruder, however, was Pidge, who very bluntly walked between Lance and Hunk, successfully ending their moment. “I’m here to talk only about one subject,” Pidge looked at Lance, eyes narrowed. “How badly did your date go?”

Keith gulped. It wasn’t  _ exactly _ a lie that he went on a date. Still, he wondered what Lance would say.

“Well, uh…” Lance seemed at a loss for words. He glanced at Keith, making eye contact quickly before breaking out into a sheepish smile. “It went pretty well, yeah. I’m hoping she’ll text me soon.”

Pidge seemed surprised, and Keith couldn’t blame her. Lance’s “date’s” almost always ended in something so terrible you’d think it came out of a romcom. A girl gives him a stranger’s number, a girl thinks he’s someone else, a girl this, a girl that. Always a girl.

Keith swallowed, hard. He could feel his palms getting sweaty, and the back of his neck heating up.  _ Shit. _

Pidge looked to him, eyes reflecting a sinister intent.  _ Does she know? _ “And how was Shiro?” Again, Keith and Lance made eye contact.

“Alive. Which is good, y’know. Being in college,” Keith managed to cough out.  _ Oh man, that must’ve sounded so stupid.  _ From over Pidge’s shoulder, Keith could see Lance giving him a reassuring thumbs up. 

_ Dig my grave now. _

Pidge shifted forward. Keith wondered what she was trying to get out of him. “Did he say anything about Matt?”  _ Ah, _ now it made sense. She just wanted to know about her damn brother.

“He’s alive, too, if that’s what you’re wondering,” Keith snorted, seeing Pidge slump back in disappointment. Lance, however, seemed to perk up.

“Who’s Matt?” he asked hesitantly with a small smile, testing the waters. Keith looked to Pidge, seeing if she’d answer but she remained silent rather stubbornly, despite Lance’s persistent nudging. She glared at Keith, a silent plead not to tell him. Keith, knowing Pidge could easily hack into his phone or laptop, decided to throw caution to the wind.

“He’s Katie’s brother,” he answered for Pidge, sending a smirk her way. Lord, he’d never hear the end of this.

“You have a brother!” Lance exclaimed. “Tell me about him!” 

Pidge looked ready to kill. “I thought we agreed on nothing personal in this room,” she demanded, lips sealed shut. She was right, of course, because Pidge was never wrong. Back in freshman year when they all stumbled into this classroom, they agreed. Strangers outside of the room. Different people inside. No talk of family, or problems.

“You asked me about my date!” But, Lance was correct, too.

Pidge didn’t have a response.

Hunk came in to rescue them. “Why don’t we talk about something else?” he tried, placing a hand on Lance’s shoulder. Lance slouched back into his touch, deep in thought and eyebrows furrowed.

“I want to know more about you guys,” he admitted. “I just… I like to think we’re friends.” Pidge flinched. “If not family, how about this…” Lance rubbed his hands together but sat up straighter to address the group. “Let’s all go around and share something we don’t know about each other.”

Pidge snorted. “This isn’t a camp Lance,” she retorted.

“I think it’s a good idea,” Keith perked up, trying to act like he didn’t see the little smile that adorned Lance’s face.

“I’ll start,” Hunk said with a smile. He took a sip of his neglected chocolate milk. “I know I always get the snacks for us here, but I also really like to cook at home.” He smiled sheepishly. Keith liked Hunk’s smile, it felt homely. “It’s sort of hard at the Garrison, but back home I’d cook dinner often.”

Lance joined in. “I can back it up! Hunk’s cooking is top notch, he really could do something if he wanted too,” he cheered on, rubbing the back of his friend’s shoulders supportively.

They fell into awkward silence for a moment, until Keith cleared his throat. “I, uh, guess I’ll go next.” They looked towards him.

“I can drive a motorcycle.” Lance looked shocked. “Not legally!” he explained, before getting red in the face. “I...I stole Shiro's bike once. When I was young.”

Slowly, Lance started laughing. It bubbled up, slowly getting louder and faster, until Hunk was laughing too. Then, Pidge was laughing as well. Keith smiled, chuckling a bit. It really did make for an interesting story.

“Dude…” Lance wiped a tear from his eyes. “I was scared for a minute. You don’t need  _ another _ thing you’re good at it.” 

Keith smiled cheekily. “Thank you… I think.” They laughed together.

Keith still didn’t know if they were  _ really _ friends. But this, whatever it may be, was fun. And it was changing, slowly. Maybe, one day he’d be able to call them friends in confidence.

“I was wondering…” Lance started, a bit further into their conversation. “Would you guys,” he gestured to Pidge and Keith. “Want to sit with us at dinner?” he asked nervously. The agreement was, after all, strangers outside of these doors.

Pidge snorted. “Yeah, and sit with Lotor’s leash. No thanks.” Lance looked confused, but Keith actually knew what she was talking about this time. A leash, or a group of foxes.

Lance looked at Keith hopefully.

Maybe, one day far away he’d be able to call them friends in confidence.

“No thanks.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> More characters! I wanted to include the MFE fighters and Lotor's squad, although they probably won't play a huge role in the actual story. I thought Kinkade would be a good roommate for Keith, who'd mind his own business and all. And of course, Lance and Hunk are roommates.


End file.
